The Market On Main, Placerville, CA

Today I had an epiphany. I don’t mean the Epiphany, as when the Wise Men encountered baby Jesus. For starters, that Epiphany is celebrated on January 6…a date that in recent years has taken on somewhat more sinister connotations.

No, I’m talking about a more run-of-the-mill epiphany, whereby I realized a profound truth. Are you ready to hear it? Get out your notebook and lick your pencil point (if you’ll pardon the expression). Are you sitting down? OK, here’s my big realization:

The physical world around us was created by many different people who didn’t much coordinate their actions.

OK, I know that doesn’t seem very profound. But ruminate on this for a minute. The house you live in, the neighbor’s house that you have to look at every day while you putter in your garden, the coffee shop where you get your cappuccino, the park where you walk your dog, the Quick Quack where you wash your car, the donut place where you get crullers every Saturday, the road you take to get there…all this built environment was created over many years by many different people (or groups of people) with very different motivations and intentions and senses of aesthetics and function. Sure, you might live in a so-called “planned community” like most of Irvine, CA or maybe Moscow. But even then, your little piece of the world grew out of many decisions and motivations and actions that have nothing to do with you. Pretty much the most we can do to match our surrounding to our tastes is to move somewhere that feels right for us. But even then, we are in the debt of those who came before.

I was thinking about all this because I was looking for a local pretzel (as one does), and Google told me to check out a place called The Market on Main in Placerville. I’ve visited Placerville’s Main Street many, many times, but I don’t remember anything called Market on Main. So I followed Google’s directions and found myself in front of a tidy clapboard building with a wrap-around porch and bright umbrellas.

I must have walked by or driven past this place many times, but it never made an impression on me. I guess it’s kind of the reverse of déjà vu. It turns out the building, which is called the J. Wonderly House, dates back to the Gold Rush. It’s been a private home, various types of stores, and now it’s a restaurant. It seemed inviting enough, so I went up the walk and entered the place.

I ended up speaking with the owners, Charissa and Anthony De Leon, who opened the place four years ago. And this is when I was struck by my epiphany. Had they not been willing to quit their jobs and put a bunch of money into this building–just before Covid shut things down, by the way–this building would still be a yarn store. And if earlier owners hadn’t gotten involved, it would still be a blacksmith’s house.

My point is that we all benefit (or, to be sure, sometimes are harmed) by investments and construction projects of our fellow citizens. And that also means that others are affected by what we do. All of which has me thinking I should really re-paint my house….

So God bless the small business owners, the neighborhood clean-up volunteers, the family with the huge display of Halloween decorations in the front yard, and the others who are creating our communities.

But to get back to my pretzel mission: The Market On Main does indeed have a soft pretzel, so I ordered one. It turns out they get them from a Milwaukee-based (!) company, because, according to Charissa, none of the local options were acceptable. I’m coming to understand that making your pretzels is a pretty tall order for a small restaurant, and I’m even coming to accept it. But I was disappointed to hear that Market on Main neither makes nor serves beer cheese with their pretzels. This, to me, is like not serving ketchup with French fries. As an alternative, they offered me “queso,” which of course is simply the Spanish word for cheese. But in Tex-Mex cuisine I understand it’s essentially a melted cheese dip, which, I suppose, could be considered analogous to beer cheese, but without the beer. Throwing caution to the wind, I took the queso.

The pretzel arrived with the promised queso (which to me looked kind of colorless and thus not promising) as well as some bright-yellow French’s mustard which I promptly tossed in the garbage. I took a bite of the pretzel without queso, and I thought it was a little bready. Not bad, but just a little puffy. The taste was slightly sweet, and there was definite maltiness on the finish.

Then I tried it with queso.

Friends, I’m a man who’s willing to admit he was wrong. And I was wrong to turn up my nose at the idea of queso as a substitute for beer cheese. This stuff was magical. It was rich and warm and creamy. What’s more, it complemented the pretzel perfectly. The saltiness of the queso balanced the sweetness of the pretzel. More importantly, the queso’s creaminess neutralized the breadiness of the pretzel, creating a combined mouthfeel that was chewy, warm, and satisfying. I must even admit that I sopped up every last bit of that queso; I even found myself wishing there had been a little more.

I’m not sure I’m willing to say that queso is superior to beer cheese. I still missed that beery flavor that really leverages the malt in the pretzel. But I do feel that queso is a damn good substitute, and perhaps it was the perfect complement for this particular, Milwaukee-based pretzel.

4.5 stars, which probably could have been 5 stars with a little beer in the mixture.

PS: If you find yourself in Placerville, you really need to check out Market on Main. Even if you’re not looking for a pretzel, this place has a great vibe, awesome staff, and great attention to their food.

PRETZEL TRIVIA

Every couple of months my brother and I get together to grab a bite and watch an old movie at the historic Tower theater in Sacramento. (Readers of a certain age might remember the international music juggernaut called Tower Records; it all started here at the Tower drugstore, attached to the Tower Theater, in 1960.)

Being Boilards, my brother and I invariably follow the same routine: We get a sandwich at Togo’s at precisely 5:50 pm, then watch a 1960’s-era movie at the Tower at 7 pm. We always sit in the same seats.

What I want to call your attention to is Togo’s. This west coast-based chain is widely understood to have one of the best hot pastrami sandwiches on the market–juicy, reasonably lean, with a perfect mix of veggies and sauces. But in 2018, they introduced a new version of this classic: the Pretzelrami.

It’s essentially the same sandwich, but on a pretzel bun. Now, I think one could argue about whether this is truly a “pretzel” bun or not. For starters, it doesn’t have the classic pretzel shape. The texture is also off, as it’s much more bready than a true pretzel. But the ingredients are similar and the dough is exposed to an alkaline bath prior to baking, so it ends up with a lot of the pretzel flavor. So let’s say that the bun is pretzelish.

Anyway, I’m a sucker for this sandwich (#71 on Togo’s menu, if you’re interested) which to me is the ideal sandwich: hot, filling, flavorful, juicy, and 840 calories (I’m not making this up). I was ordering it every time I went into Togos. Then, around 2022, they discontinued it without explanation. The sandwich makers at Togo’s were still wearing the T-shirts that said “Pretzelrami!”, but when I asked about it they just shrugged and said “it’s an old shirt.” I cannot express my disappointment at having to switch back to the regular old hot pastrami sandwich (#9).

And then, a miracle. On June 30, 2025, Togo’s announced the return of the Pretzelrami….on an “upgraded” pretzel roll. If you live anywhere near a Togo’s, I encourage you to go out and get one before they disappear again.